White Oaks Weekly - May 3, 2020

In this Issue: Principals Message, SCEF DAY is May 6 - Help Us Meet Our Goal, Volunteer with the PTA, Enrollment Confirmation for 2020-2021 - Please Complete the Intent to Attend Form, District News and Events

From the Principal

Dear White Oaks Families,

We had SUCH a great time parading around town in celebration of May Day on Friday! The smiles, cheers, and flowers and signs absolutely made our day! What a wonderful way to begin this new month. Below are just a few pictures highlighting the event. More can be found on our White Oaks Connection page on FaceBook.

It is Teacher Appreciation Week! The PTA has some fun activities planned to honor our teachers and say “thank you” for the incredible work they do every day. Their dedication to providing such a well-rounded curriculum is praiseworthy. We are very fortunate to be in the care of these amazing teachers and I am so excited for them to be showered with love and gratitude this week!

Also starting this week, teachers will begin returning to campus to clean out classrooms for the year so that custodians can begin their “summer” deep cleaning. Teachers will be unavailable for Zoom calls and will be delayed in responding via email while they are on campus. Each teacher will communicate with you which two days they will be unavailable. Your child will still have school work to do during this time.

As part of the clean-out, teachers will be gathering up all student belongings that need to go home and placing them in bags for you to pick up. These pick-ups will be staggered so that parents and teachers can follow social distancing guidelines. Each class will have a specific time for the pick-up in order to allow for social distancing. I will send more information on this for each specific classroom in the coming weeks.

We recently came to an agreement with our San Carlos Teachers Association that will support teachers in their distance learning efforts through the final weeks of school. In this agreement, to acknowledge the swiftness with which our teachers started this effort, and to honor just how difficult teaching and preparation is for distance learning, we agreed that teachers would have access to six hours of preparation and planning time each week. This augments our current agreement around planning time.

The time can be taken in a single block (one full day), or in chunks spread throughout the week. Times will ultimately be chosen by grade level teams at and teachers will build their planning time into their weekly schedules. Teachers will communicate the specifics with you.

SCEF DAY is May 6This week our school calendar includes SCEF Day. Traditionally, this is a day when we wear green and wave flags to bring attention to the work of the San Carlos Education Foundation.

Founded in 1982, the Foundation and its board of parent volunteers work each year to raise funds to support key positions and programs not possible with state funding alone. Their mission is to support equity across the district and benefit every child, every day in every classroom.

The role of SCEF is more important this year than ever before. The Coronavirus has and will continue to negatively impact school funding next year. The whole-child programs you have come to expect would not be possible without SCEF and SCEF would not be possible with you.

Wednesday May 6, is SCEF Day. Since we won’t be on campus, please consider brightening your front door/yard and celebrating our schools with green decorations! Color a “flat ed” and place it in your window to show your support.

The SCEF board wants me to let you know that, due to the budget challenges in our district, they are asking donors who are able to make donations, of any amount, to consider giving by May 31, 2020. This will provide the school board with the most up-to-date information as they develop budgets for next school year. Learn more at www.scefkids.org.

Thank you for your consideration, your patience and partnership this year as we navigate distance learning

Volunteer with the PTAWe are already recruiting the PTA board for the 2020-21 school year. There is one executive board position still open and we are looking for new members to join and continue the awesome work of the WO PTA. There is a vacant spot for Parliamentarian, the board member who supports the presidents and leads the volunteer recruitment. Contact Catherine Dunne to learn more. There are also a few additional PTA roles available so if you have some time to donate, please get in touch. Some of these positions can be home-based and suit a range of schedules.

SCEF News

Help Us Meet Our Goal!SCEF knows that while fundraising earlier this school year has been strong, we still need to raise $700,000 to meet our $2.8M goal. We are committed to working with the community to meet our 2019-20 goal and raise as much as we can to support public education in San Carlos.

We believe that raising funds to help protect jobs is the most important thing the parent community can do right now. The vast majority of SCEF's annual grant to SCSD funds people--teachers and other educators. The more money SCEF can raise this spring, the more impact we will have to help the district meet its budget obligations --including reducing possible layoffs.

If your employer has a workplace giving program, and you are able to give, please consider making a contribution now. Many large companies have recently increased the matching within their program. Or perhaps commit to a monthly amount that helps you achieve your desired annual gift, over time - https://www.scefkids.org/donate/.

District News and Events

Enrollment Confirmation for 2020-2021 - Please Complete the Intent to Attend FormEach spring, we ask families for assistance in completing an Intent to Attend Form regarding your child's enrollment for the next 2020-2021 school year. Please look for an email from the school your child will attend next year. If your child is currently in 3rd or 5th grade, they should have received an email from their new upper elementary or middle school. The email will contain the link for your school's form.

Your timely completion of this form will assist SCSD in having the most accurate numbers for returning students for the 2020-2021 school year, which is directly tied to the SCSD budget and will allow the District in planning for staffing needs more effectively.

After completing this form, you will receive an email from noreplyregistration@powerschool.com in early May that will provide you with specific directions on how to complete the registration process online including a link to access the InfoSnap portal, as well as a special ID number for your student, referred to as the “Infosnap Code."

Thank you for your assistance with this important process.

Registration Open for the 2020-2021 SMARTE After-school Clubhouse!Registration for new students to attend the SMARTE After-school Clubhouse for the 2020-2021 school year has opened! Access the registration page here.

The SMARTE program is dedicated to enriching children's lives after school. We provide a fun, safe and welcoming place to spend time each day. Programs are available to students at our four elementary schools - Arundel, Brittan Acres, Heather and White Oaks. Registration is on a first come, first served basis.

Preschool and SMARTE After School Virtual ProgramLooking for fun and engaging activities for your kids NOW, while you're working from home? Come join the SMARTE Virtual Clubhouse!

SMARTE Virtual Clubhouse - Students will have real-time interaction with our staff via Zoom. We took our most popular activities and created a fun, engaging schedule that includes STEAM activities, music, play, movement, yoga/meditation, readalouds, and social interactions with friends. Your child can choose to join us from 10am-12pm (BA Clubhouse) or 2pm-5pm, students can join us for either block of time. The reduced cost is $300/month. Please visit our SMARTE website for more information - or email the SMARTE office at smarteinfo@scsdk8.org.

Virtual Preschool - Our preschool program has moved into a virtual Zoom preschool classroom as well. Children are having real-time interaction with their teachers, calendar and weather time, completing fun projects together, singing songs, reading books, dancing and playing. The preschool offers four hours of learning, play and teacher interaction each day. We have multiple teachers per classroom, so the team of teachers will be engaging with students and parents virtually from 9-10:30am; 11:30am-12:30pm; and 2-3:30pm. The reduced cost is $600/month. If you are interested in joining a virtual preschool classroom, contact Sue Dawley at sdawley@scsdk8.org and visit our Preschool website for more information.

Community News and Events

San Carlos Hometown Days Rescheduled for AugustAfter much thought and discussion, the San Carlos Hometown Days Committee has decided to reschedule Hometown Days 2020 from May 15-17 to August 28-30. We are sad that we have to postpone Hometown Days, but felt that this was a fitting decision due to the times and due to the fact that originally HTD was actually held in the fall.

We are committed to putting on a great celebration for our 40th Anniversary! We are looking forward to seeing you in the end of August!! Cheers to 40 Years!!!

Emergency Childcare Survey - Essential WorkforceMany parents in our community are essential workers, and we want to connect you with organizations that are providing emergency childcare if that is a need you have. The Childcare Coordinating Council (4Cs) is centralizing the planning and sharing out of these resources. Please complete this short, 8-question online survey to be connected to 4Cs’ child care resource and referral staff who will help you find emergency child care. You may receive this survey more than once. Please complete one per family.

Census 2020Completing the 2020 Census has never been easier! If you misplaced your 12-digit Census ID or don’t know how to start the process, you still have time. Visit the County of San Mateo - Government's Census page for more information.